Bringing Sex Education to Burundi’s Youth Through Radio

Our colleagues at PSI recently shared a blog post about a new program in Burundi that is working to increase access to sexual and reproductive health information for youth through radio:

In a mixture of Kirundi, Swahili and French, Mimi starts the show: “Good afternoon youth and all of you fans of the show Tube Class. Whether you’re at your house or spending time with your friends, I’m here with my co-host Fernand to have a good time together on this beautiful Saturday afternoon.” Rihanna’s latest hit plays in the background.

Mimi is introducing a pretty revolutionary concept in Burundi: a youth radio show that talks openly about relationships, sex and health – in a fun and engaging manner. Tube Class (which translates to “Be Class” in English) aims to increase youth knowledge about how to protect themselves against STDs, HIV and unintended pregnancies. Prudence Class is PSI/Burundi’s condom brand, and was a name chosen because youth routinely use the word “class” as a substitute for being “cool” or “chic”. And in a country where talking about sex is taboo, and youth routinely report being too embarrassed to buy condoms, it’s an important subject.

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The posts on this blog do not necessarily reflect the views of the Maternal Health Task Force. Our objective is to provide a platform for our Editorial Committee and other experts to post a myriad of data and evidence, as well as opinions/views that exist in the field which will contribute to expanding the maternal health dialogue.